Floaters Specialist
Floaters Q & A
What are floaters?
Floaters are spots that appear in your vision that look like dark-colored specks, cobwebs, or strings that move around when you move your eyes. They often appear to move away when you try to focus in on the spots.
While floaters are usually harmless, they could be a sign of a more serious problem or reduce your quality of life. Simple treatments can help get rid of floaters.
What are the symptoms of floaters?
If you have floaters you might notice one or more of the following symptoms:
- Black or gray specks or strings in your vision
- Spots in your vision that move around
- Specks that move away when you try to focus on them
- Spots that are more pronounced when looking at a plain background
While floaters are painless and often harmless, they are sometimes associated with an eye disease or tearing of your retina. Floaters are often caused by age-related eye changes that cause the vitreous portion of your eye to become fluid versus jelly-like.
See Dr. Reddy and her team for an evaluation if you experience new floaters, more floaters than usual, flashes of light in your eyes, peripheral vision loss, or floaters that bother you.
What are the risk factors for floaters?
Anybody can develop floaters but certain factors increase your risk of experiencing them. Examples include being over age 50, past eye trauma, eye inflammation, diabetic retinopathy, eye surgery complications, and being nearsighted.
How are floaters diagnosed?
To diagnose floaters, Dr. Reddy and her team complete a comprehensive eye analysis that includes a dilated exam.
She uses eye drops to get a better look at the back portion of your eyes, determine what’s causing floaters, and establish the most appropriate treatment.
What is the treatment for floaters?
Floaters don’t always require treatment, especially if they aren’t associated with an underlying eye disease. However, if floaters impair your vision or reduce your quality of life, Dr. Reddy might recommend:
Laser treatment
Laser treatment helps break up floaters to make them less noticeable in your vision.
Eye surgery
Surgically removing the jelly-like vitreous portion of your eye and replacing it with a special solution can help reduce floaters while maintaining the integrity of your eye.
Underlying eye disorder treatments
If eye floaters are associated with inflammation or diabetic eye issues, Dr. Reddy can treat the underlying cause of floaters.
To get rid of floaters or rule out serious eye complications, schedule an appointment with Athena Eye Institute over the phone or online today.